I have made damson gin for many years due to the lack of accessible sloes in my neck of the woods. I havve also used vodka, whisky and brandy. Brandy is not my usual tipple but I make an exception with this. A few years ago Alan Titchmarsh asked for recipes for 'fruit flavoured alcohol' and got several hundred recipes for sloe/damson etc with spirits as a base. I was on holiday last week and spent a day collecting sticks for stick dressing with the added bonus of finding wonderful sloes. They were bottled within 24 hours.The whole process from picking to being pickled is a truly satisfying one.
Happy picking
Maggie